The NRA sent a letter to its members stating that “suddenly, without prior notice, YETI has declined to do business with The NRA Foundation saying they no longer wish to be an NRA vendor, and refused to say why.”

Atkinson’s demonstration came roughly a week after he first expressed concerns over YETI on social media. Out of those discussions, Monday’s protest was born.

He said some of his friends are thinking about doing a similar demonstration, but will give Hartsville a break and blow up their coolers somewhere else in the Pee Dee.

Atkinson's protest caught the attention of the Hartsville Police Department. A post on the department’s social media page encouraged those with “excess Yeti Coolers to blow up, instead; feel free to donate them to the police department, where we can use them to store cold water and sports drinks for our officers during the summer months.”

YETI responded to the claims in a post on its Facebook page. In that statement, the company states it notified the NRA and other organizations that they were eliminating a group of “outdated discounting programs.”

“When we notified the NRA Foundation and the other organizations of this change, YETI explained that we were offering them an alternative customization program broadly available to consumers and organizations, including the NRA Foundation. These facts directly contradict the inaccurate statement the NRA-ILA distributed on April 20,” the statement read in part.

The 24th annual Circle K Speed Street kicks offkicks off Thursday at noon. Crowds of Charlotteans will the fill streets of uptown Charlotte from Thursday to Saturday to celebrate the May races at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The 24th annual Circle K Speed Street kicks offkicks off Thursday at noon. Crowds of Charlotteans will the fill streets of uptown Charlotte from Thursday to Saturday to celebrate the May races at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

A newly released 911 call reveals the tragic moments after a man crashed his car into a Gaston County restaurant Sunday, killing his daughter and daughter-in-law and seriously injuring several family members.

A newly released 911 call reveals the tragic moments after a man crashed his car into a Gaston County restaurant Sunday, killing his daughter and daughter-in-law and seriously injuring several family members.